Are we too germaphobic?

I had an interesting experience one day last week. Now I don't know if this is becoming the norm, but I have never seen so much hands free apparatus.

I don't have a doctor here yet, so I went to a walk in clinic after work for a referral to a dermatologist for a skin condition. I had to wait approximately one hour and then I saw this very nice female doctor, who I must admit I would have loved to have for a family doctor. She was very kind, a good sense of humour, and really seemed to listen to my questions, and offered quite helpful suggestions.

Before I left the clinic, I decided to use the bathroom before I headed home. That's when my adventure began.

There is a sign on the outside of the bathroom door telling you to pass your hand over a sensor to open the door. Sure enough, like waving a magic wand, the door opens. Once inside, the door automatically closes and locks. No contact required. The toilet is a rather odd looking style, with a totally round seat. Then you sit down to use said facility, and when you're done, bathroom tissue is dispensed from a holder, again by sensor. Now comes the interesting part.
When you stand up, a stream of water comes from the back of the seat, and as it flows over the seat, the seat spins around, and gets washed. When it returns to the starting position, the toilet flushes.
Next over to the more familiar sink where you simply put your hands under the tap and water automatically starts to flow. To the side of the sink is a large contraption with two horizontal flat panels, somewhat like a large waffle iron standing on it's head. You insert your hands, flat, with fingers spread out, and warm air automatically turns on to dry the hands. Once you've finished drying your hands, you wave your hand over the sensor by the door, and once again, the door opens. Oh, and I forgot, there is an apparatus on the wall by the toilet, that of course, is run by a sensor. When you activate this devise, it makes a rather loud sound like running water, and runs for approximately one minute. The sole purpose of this devise it to mask any embarrassing bathroom noises that may be emitted!

This futuristic experience got me to thinking - have we become too paranoid about germs? The whole H1N1 scare really affected people causing all sorts of panic. In the end it really turned out to be somewhat of a non-issue. I know that some people died, some who did not seem to fit the profile of those who would typically die from the flu. But in reality lots of people die from the flu each year, we just don't hear about them all.

I grew up in the country, around farm animals like chickens and horses, and I am positive that I was exposed to all sorts of bacteria, yet I was very rarely sick. I know there are certain standards that we all need to meet in terms of hygiene, but I really think that some exposure to these bacteria isn't all bad. Isn't that how we build resistance to them in the first place?

I'll have to have that chat with Patti when she comes down next week.

This morning it's a little icy, after some freezing rain overnight, but not bad driving if you took your time. We are in for flurries tonight and 5 to 10 cm of snow tomorrow. James, you may get your wish for snow while you are here. I could use another snow day! Lots of little projects I could get finished with an extra day. But I do have the weekend coming up.

I am supposed to start a new quilting class this Saturday but I'm not sure if I will or not. It's going to cost for the class, as well as the materials, and I'm trying to save money right now. My job may very well be finished at the end of April and I don't know where I'm going from here. I really hate that uncertainty. There is nothing at the University right now, and I got a call from Chef Jill two days ago, to see if I'm going back to Crow Bush this summer. But the hours there are not full time and I found it difficult to manage with unreliable pay cheques. I'm going to have to give this one a lot of thought, to determine my next move.